Leonard Saxe (born June 12, 1947) is an American

social psychologist Social psychology is the methodical study of how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. Although studying many of the same substantive topics as its counterpart in the field of ...

whose work focuses on

sociology of religion Sociology of religion is the study of the beliefs, practices and organizational forms of religion using the tools and methods of the discipline of sociology. This objective investigation may include the use both of Quantitative research, quantit ...

American Jews American Jews (; ) or Jewish Americans are American citizens who are Jewish, whether by culture, ethnicity, or religion. According to a 2020 poll conducted by Pew Research, approximately two thirds of American Jews identify as Ashkenazi, 3% id ...

and the

American Jewish community American Jews (; ) or Jewish Americans are American citizens who are Jewish, whether by culture, ethnicity, or religion. According to a 2020 poll conducted by Pew Research, approximately two thirds of American Jews identify as Ashkenazi, 3% iden ...

. He is currently the director of the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies at

Brandeis University Brandeis University () is a Private university, private research university in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. It is located within the Greater Boston area. Founded in 1948 as a nonsectarian, non-sectarian, coeducational university, Bra ...

.Brandeis University faculty page

Sociological research

Saxe has conducted a number of studies on the

."Publications by Author. ''Berman Jewish Policy Archive''.
/ref> Saxe's research points to a more positive outlook on concerns of the American Jewish community. His figures show larger than previously reported estimates of the population size of American Jewry.Kamaras, Jacob. New U.S. Jewish population figures may allow community to ‘get beyond the numbers’. ''JNS.org''. October 1, 2013.
/ref>Beckerman, Gal. New Study Finds More Jews in the United States Than Previously Thought. ''The Jewish Daily Forward''. December 22, 2010.
/ref>

2010 Census of American Jews

In 2010, Saxe, along with sociologists Elizabeth Tighe and

Charles Kadushin Charles Garfiel Kadushin (June 5, 1932 – September 21, 2022) was an American psychologist and emeritus professor of psychology at the City University of New York. He was an expert in the field of social network analysis. Biography Kadushin's ...

published their secondary data findings from local Jewish community studies. Their findings were intended to act as a census of American Jews, as the

National Jewish Population Survey The National Jewish Population Survey (NJPS), most recently performed in 2000-01, is a representative survey of the Jewish population in the United States sponsored by United Jewish Communities and the Jewish Federation system. Based on the re ...

had been cancelled due to budget constraints.Tighe, Elizabeth, Leonard Saxe & Charles Kadushin. Estimating the Jewish Population of the United States: 2000-2010. ''Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies (CMJS)''. 2011.
/ref>

Birthright-Taglit studies

Saxe has conducted a number of studies on the effect of the Birthright-Taglit program on young American Jews.

Awards

In 2012, Saxe was the recipient of the

ASSJ The Association for the Social Scientific Study of Jewry (ASSJ) is a cross-disciplinary organization of individuals whose research concerns the Jewish people throughout the world, founded in 1971. Purpose The ASSJ comprises primarily academics, b ...

's Marshall Sklare Award for his contributions to the social scientific study of contemporary Jewry.

References

External links